I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an assembly fixture for a workpiece.
II. Description of Relevant Art
In many shops and manufacturing facilities, fixtures are often created in order to manufacture a particular part or component. These fixtures typically include a generally planar base that is constructed of a rigid material, such as steel, aluminum, or the like. Furthermore, the base is dimensioned so that the component or workpiece being assembled can be positioned, at least in part, on top of the base.
These previously known assembly fixtures are designed to hold two or more components of the final workpiece in a predetermined fixed pattern. Thereafter, the components of the workpiece are secured together by any conventional means, such as welding, riveting, or other fastening. After the components are secured together, the workpiece is removed from the base and new components to form a subsequent workpiece are then positioned on the base in the predetermined pattern.
In order to hold the components of the workpiece in their fixed pattern during the assembly operation, quick release clamps are conventionally mounted to the base around the workpiece components. These quick release clamps are movable from a clamped position in which the clamps engage and hold the workpiece components, and a release position in which the clamps retract away from the workpiece components after assembly to allow the assembled components to be removed from the base. Quick release clamps, furthermore, are desired as opposed to standard clamps since the quick release clamps enable the clamps to be moved from their clamped and to their release position rapidly.
Although different means may be used to secure the quick release clamps to the fixture base, oftentimes the quick release clamps are simply welded to the base. After the fixture is no longer required, at least for the time being, the quick release clamps are oftentimes removed from the base and reused with other fixtures. Such reuse of the quick release clamps is desirable due to the relatively high cost of such clamps.
A major difficulty, however, arises after the quick release clamps are removed from the base of the welding fixture. If the clamps are removed and the fixture stored away for a period of time, the subsequent reassembly of the welding fixture by attaching the clamps to the base is both difficult and time consuming. Furthermore, it is not always evident from the fixture base itself what sort of quick release clamps were attached to the base or the orientation of the clamps relative to the base. When this occurs, essentially a redesign of the welding fixture is required in order to ensure that the workpiece components are properly clamped and held together during the assembly operation. Such redesign of the welding fixture, however, is time consuming and may also introduce error into the assembly of the workpiece components. When this occurs, assembled workpieces from an earlier use of the fixture may differ somewhat from the workpieces assembled with the newly designed assembly fixture.
Furthermore, in the event that the clamp fails, it has been previously necessary to remove the broken clamp and weld a new clamp precisely in its place. Such clamp replacement is time consuming and stops the whole production line using the fixture.